Rotary-valve internal-combustion engine.



w. B; LOWE.

ROTARY VALVE INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE l9. 1912.

Patented M3116, 1 917;

saw 3 M 'wi tneooco new vers on.

WILLIAM B. LOWE, 0F. BABYLON, NEW YORK.

Application filed June 19, 1912.

To all wkom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM B. Lown, a

citizen of the United 'States, residing at' Babylon, Long Island, in the county of Suffolk and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rotary Valve Internal Combustion Engines; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the inventon, such as will-enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains'to'make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to the class of internal combustion engines but more particularly to an internal combustion engine of the four stroke type in which a rotary valve is employed to open and close theintake and exhaust ports either in a single or a multicylinder motor, thesaid rotary valve being arranged in such manner as to open and close the said intake and exhaust ports in proper sequence.

A further object of the invention is to provide novel means for intaking the combustible mixture into the rotary valve to lead the same to the intake ports of the cylinders.

A further object .of the invention is to I provide a rotary valve internal combustion engine of the four stroke type in a simple, cheap and etlicient manner. 1 a

With all these objects in view the invention consists in the novel construction of the rotary valve and in the novel construction of the housing or casing therefor.

A further objectof the invention is to provide an internal combustion engine of the four stroke type in which means is employed to relieve the cylinder of all exhaust gases in such manner that there will be no carbon deposit around the rotary valve.

The invention further consists in certain Specification of Letters Patent.

ROTARY-VALVE INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Patented Mar. 6, 1917.

Serial No. 704,644.

other novel'details of construction and in combinations of parts, all of which will be first fully described and afterward specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a horizontal sectional view illustrating the rotary valve, and

Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical sectional view through the valve illustrated in Fig. I at one of the exhaust ports.

Like numerals of reference indicate the same parts throughout the several figures in which;

1 indicates the motor which, as shown in the accompanying drawings, is a four cyl inder machine, but it will be clearly apparent from the following specification that the motor may be of a single cylinder or of any number of cylinders, the number and 'size of the cylinders being immaterial as far as this invention is concerned. For the sake, however, of a better understanding of the invention thesame will be described as applied to a four cylinder motor as shown in the drawings.

2 indicates the first pair of cylinders which are preferably cast en bloa and 3 indicates the second pair of cylinders which are preferably cast en, bloc.

At the head of each pair of cylinders is provided the valve casing or housing 12 which accommodates the rotary valve 13, said casing 12 of each pair of cylinders being connected together by a sleeve 14 as shown in Fig. 1.

The movement of the rotary valve 13 is timed in such manner that the said valve 13 rotates at half engine speed, and this gearing may be effectedin' any convenient manner as by means of a spur pinion 15 on the crank shaft not shown which meshes with a spur gear 16, said spur gear 16 having exactly twice the number of teeth that the spur pinion 15 has in such manner that the spur pinion 15 makes two revolutions to a full revolution of the spur gear 16. 19 is a vertical shaft which carries at its upper end a worm 2O meshing with a worm gear 21, which system of gearing rotates the rotary. valve 13 at half the speed of the crank shaft 8. As will appear from Fig. 1 the cylinders and valve casing or housing are water-jacketed in such manner as to provide a proper and efficient cooling of the entire device; while I employ a further cooling means for the rotary valve 13 which will be hereinafter fully described.

Referring now to Fig. 1 it will be seen that a packingbox 22'is employed at one end of the valve 13 to prevent leakage and pressure from escaping from the valve.

It will be seen that the valve casing or housing 12 is provided with an exhaust port 29 for each of the cylinders, while the intake port 30 enters the sleeve 14c which connects the two sets of cylinders together. Centrally of the rotary valve are provided a plurality of elongated slots 31 which ro-- tate dir'ectlv under the sleeve 14, an annular chamber beingprovided under the sleeve 1% as shown in Fig. l which is at all times in communication ,with the plurality of elongated slots 31 in the rotary valve 13, this construction providing for a communication between the intake passage 30 and all of the elongated slots. 31 in the valve 13 at all times, it being of course understood that the carburetor or other mixing device is connected to or attached to the intake passage 30 in the usual manner. It will further be seen from an inspection of the accompanying drawings. that the interior of the rotary valve 13 is hollow from one end to the other. Consequently" the elongated slots 31 in the valve 13 communicate with the interior of the valve in such manner that the interior of the valve is at all times filled with a combustible mixture, which passes into the valve upon the intake strokes of the pistons, and it will be seen that the rotary valve 13 is provided with ports 33 which communicate with the intake ports of the'cylinders not shownv insuchrmanner that upon the intake stroke of each of the .pistons the combustible mixture is drawn into the cylinders through the ports 33 and intake ports of the cylinders, the ports 33 in therotary valve 13 being disposed in the said valve in such manner that they will be brought into communication with the intake ports of the cylinders in proper' sequence. Neither the intake nor exhaust ports in the cylinder heads are shown in the drawings, as they are disposed in proper transverse planes with respect to the intake and exhaust ports in the rotary valve to be properly opened and closed thereby.

34: indicates the exhaust ports in the rotary valve 13 which communicates with the exhaust port in the cylinder head and the exhaust port in the valve casing 12 so that a complete exhausting of the cylinder is effected.

It will be seen that the rotary valve 1 is provided withthesame arrangement 0. intake and exhaust ports but that a con gases.

tinuous passage is arranged through the entire length of the valve 13, the wall formation for said passage being indicated by the reference numeral 34 in Figs. 1 and 2, the reduced ends 35 of the valve entering passages 36 at each end thereof, which passages 36 are stationary relative to the valve, suitable packing boxes 3'( being .PlOVlflQCl to prevent leakage between the valve 13 and the passages 36, in such manner that the water enters the said valve axially. thereof at one end of said valve and is discharged axially of said'valve at the other end thereof. By this construction the valve is guarded against overheating while the I water therein passing from the water jacket valve capable of withstanding the heat generated by the ignition of the combustible Referring to Fig. 2 it will be seen that at each exhaust port 34- the continuous passage 38 is formed to provide a waterjacket for thewall 39 of the exhaust port 34% in such manner that the hot gases entering the exhaust port of the valve 13 will be prevented from unduly heating the valve 13. As will appear from Fig. 1 a suitable arrangement of ball races 40 is provided at one end of the valve 13 in order to pre vent friction in operation and to properly adjust the said valve in relation to the intake and exhaust ports of the cylinders.

' Having thus fully described. the inventions its operation is as follows:

The rotary valve is so arranged as to bring the intake and exhaust ports of said valve into communication with the, intake and exhaust ports of the cylinders in proper sequence and as the rotary valve 13 is timed to rotate at half the speed of the crank shaft this proper sequence of the valve is at all times maintained during the operation of the motor and as 1t 18 impossible in th1s construction to have the valves get out of time a proper and efficient operation of the engine is at all times assured, while as is of course evident from an inspection of the accompanying drawings a different timing .of the valves can be effected by slipping a tooth or teeth in the valve gearing in such manner that the communication between the ports in the rotary valve 13 and the intake and exhaust ports in the cylinder heads can be advanced or retarded which is sometimes necessary in engines of the four stroke type, particularly when said enginesfare adapted to certain purposes, it being'the usual practies to advance the timing of valves in four stroke motors when thesaid motolsare de signed to, run at excessively high speed in such manner as to allow as much time as possible in order to properly intake and exhaust the gases from the cylinders.

Having thus fully described the invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. An internal combustion engine comprising cylinders and pistons, each cylinder ends thereof with means for receiving internally of the said valve a gaseous fuel,

said valve being also provided with means for leading said gaseous fuel internally and longitudinally of the said valve and provided with means for leading a column of water longitudinally of the said valve, and within the same to cool the said valve and to heat the said gaseous fuel, the said valve bebeing provided in its head with an intake ing provided with ports arranged t0 regis- {5 port and with an exhaust port, a rotary valve at the cylinder heads, a casing for said rotary valve, said rotary valve being provided with exhaust ports arranged to register with the exhaust ports in the heads' of said cylinders, the said rotary valve being provided intermediate of its ends with an opening for receiving within the said rotary valve a gaseous fuel, said rotary valve being provided with a longitudinal passage extending in bothdirections from said opening intermediate the ends of the valve to lead the gaseous fuel longitudinally of the yalve in both directions, the said rotary valve being provided with ports arranged to register with the said intake ports in the cylinder heads to deliver the said gaseous fuel within the said rotary valve to the said cylinders, the said rotary valve being provided longitudinally thereof with a passage to receive cooling water to cool the said "alve 1nd to heat the said gaseous fuel within the said valve, substantially as described and for the purposes set forth.

2. An internal combustion engine comprising cylinders'and pistons, the heads of said cylinders being provided with suitable intake ports and exhaust ports, a rotary dinally thereof to lead the gaseous fuel longitudinally of the said valve, the said valve being provided with ports to register with the intake ports in said cylinder heads to deliver said gaseous fuel from the interior of said valve to the said cylinders, and means for leading a column of water longitudinally -of said valve to cool the said valve and to heat the said gaseous fuel.

3. An internal combustion engine comprising cylinders and pistons, said cylinders being successively arranged and provided in their heads with exhaust ports and intake ports, a rotary valve arranged at the cylinder heads and provided with exhaust ports adapted to register with the exhaust ports in the cylinder heads, the said rotary valve being provided at a point intermediate the haust ports in said cylinder heads, said rotaryvalve being provided at a point intermediate the ends thereof with means for receivinginternally of the said valve-a gaseous fuel, said rotary valve being provided internally thereof with passages leading longitudinally of said valve to receive. the gaseous fuel and also provided internally thereof and longitudinally of said valve with a passage to receive Water to cool the said valve and to heat the said gaseous fuel within the same, said valve being provided with ports communicating with said passages containing the gaseous fuel which ports are arranged to register with .the intake ports in the cylinder heads to deliver the gaseous fuel from the interior ofbthe said valve to the cylinders.

5. An internal combustion engine comprising cylinders and pistons, suitable in-' take and exhaust ports arranged in the heads of said cylinders, a rotary valve on said cylinders, said valve being provided with exhaust ports to register with the exhaust ports of said cylinders and withadditional ports adapted to register with the intake.

head of said cylinder, a rotary valve ar-* ranged at the head of saidcylinder and pro,

vided with an exhaust port to register with the exhaust port in said cylinder head, means for receiving internally of the said valve a gaseous fuel,said valve being provided with a port to register with the intake port in the cylinder head to deliver the gaseous fuel from Within the said valve to the said eylinder, and means for conducting longitudinally of the said valve and. internally there- Qf a column of Water to cool the said valve In testimony whereof, I affix my signature, 1n presence of two wltnesses. .7

, WILLIAM B. LOWE. Witnesses 5 and to heat the said gaseous fuel Within the I E. H. MCCQLLOGH,

R. Z. McCoLLoon.

Copies of this patent may he obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner Washington, D; 0.

same.

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